No one knows what happened the night Echo Emerson went from popular girl with jock boyfriend to gossiped-about outsider with "freaky" scars on her arms. Even Echo can't remember the whole truth of that horrible night. All she knows is that she wants everything to go back to normal.But when Noah Hutchins, the smoking-hot, girl-using loner in the black leather jacket, explodes into her life with his tough attitude and surprising understanding, Echo's world shifts in ways she could never have imagined. They should have nothing in common. And with the secrets they both keep, being together is pretty much impossible.

Yet the crazy attraction between them refuses to go away. And Echo has to ask herself just how far they can push the limits and what she'll risk for the one guy who might teach her how to love again.

My Review

Fans of Perfect Chemistry will love this one! I know I’m really into a book if it can make me cry, and this one did several times. It also made me laugh frequently, which earns even more bonus points.

Noah and Echo were both beautifully flawed. They had both been through a lot for being so young, and had the scars to prove it. I love how at the start, things seem very black and white in their lives, and the adults seem to be the bad guys. The book was full of ups and downs, and I like how there was a clear change in each of the characters as the story progressed. There were lessons learned and realizations made. And at the end we realized (as did the characters) that there was more to the story than what Echo and Noah could see.

I love a story that can pull off switching points of view. And this one definitely did! I had an ebook from NetGalley, and it failed to decipher where Noah ended and Echo began. It wasn’t even separated into paragraphs. One sentence would be Noah, then it would jump right to Echo. Yet I still knew when the POV changed. I could easily tell the difference between the two and there was no confusion, because Noah and Echo each had distinct personalities.

I liked Echo. She was fiery and even though she had her weaknesses, she still had strength. And she was funny. The banter between her and Noah made me giggle, and some of Echo’s terminology (like the Wizard of Oz references to her step-mother, or her ‘mutant pterodactyls’ instead of butterflies) were very amusing.

Noah was fabulous! He was kind of an ass at times, but he had his sweet moments, too. He had good intentions even if he had a funny way of showing it at times.

This book definitely tackled some tough issues. Divorce, loss, trauma, foster and step parents. Echo’s suppressed memories made me crave answers. What happened?! It had to be some seriously bad shit for her mind to go on lockdown, right? And it was. I can’t imagine going through even half of the crap that she did. Or what Noah did, for that matter.

I didn’t love it quite as much as I hoped, but I still really enjoyed it and it pulled on my heart strings for sure. It was a heart wrenching and emotional book!

“Are you ready to take the ACT on Saturday?” my father asked. Did chickens enjoy being put on trucks labeled KFC?

9 Responses to “Review: Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry”

Everybody seems to love this book. I only hear raving things about it and still.. I can’t make myself to read it. There is something about it that totally turns me off. I’m glad that you liked it as much as all the others did!

I really love Pushing the Limits! It sucked me in from page one and it didn’t let me go. I’m so glad I read this even though it’s a bit on the heavy side because I think this is one of the best contemporaries I’ve read this year. I’m also really amused with the pterodactyls… Hehe!